In the end
by Little Lotte Daae
Summary: Hey all! Ok, I'm kind of on a linkin park binge at the moment, so i wrote this song fic to


Heeelllloooooooo! I'm on somewhat of a Linkin Park binge, so I decided to write a song fic. This is my first attempt, so if you don't like it, please don't flame me too badly. Ok well here it is…my first attempt at a song fic…Enjoy!!  
  
Also, I don't own Harry Potter, JK Rowling and Warner Brothers do…and I don't own Linkin Park or these lyrics…I guess their manager does or something…? Ah well…  
  
~: means song lyrics  
  
  
  
  
  
It was graduation day. Harry, Ron, and Hermione stood in the Common Room with the other seventh years. Everyone was a bundle of nerves. Hermione was fussing over every detail, such as the slightly fraying end of Harry's robes. Professor McGonagall appeared, looking somewhat somber, and told them that the train to take them home would arrive in five minutes, and that Professor Dumbledore wanted a word with them before they left. Slightly teary eyed, she wished them luck in the future and told them that no matter what, they would always find peace at Hogwarts. Harry sighed and looked around the room. Eight years ago, he wouldn't have believe any of this to be possible. But he had been destined to come here. Ever since that Halloween night seventeen years ago…  
  
~*~It starts with one thing~I don't know why~it doesn't even matter how hard you try~keep that in mind I designed this rhyme~to explain in due time~all I know~*~  
  
  
  
Harry felt the familiar bitter anxiety rise in his throat. He had never known his parents. Because of Voldemort. Voldemort. Just the name made Harry feel like punching something, but as the closest thing to him at the moment was Ron, he didn't think that was such a good idea. Trying to get his mind off his parents, he watched Hermione and Ron standing together talking quietly with Parvati and Lavender. Was Harry mistaken, or was Ron holding Hermione's hand under her robes? Could it be that Ron had fallen for the girl he had once called a bossy know-it-all? He marveled at how amazing it was that time could change people so much…  
  
~*~time is a valuable thing~watch it fly by as the pendulum swings~watch it count down to the end of the day~the clock ticks life away~it's so unreal~*~  
  
  
  
Professor McGonagall reappeared, now openly crying. "Professor Dumbledore would like to see you now," she said in a choked voice, "The train has arrived." With her last words, Harry felt his stomach jolt. This was it. He had spent the last seven years of his life at this school. It had been his only source of happiness since the bleak day when his parents were killed. His throat tightened. He didn't want to leave it now. Hermione came to his side. Harry felt her intwine her fingers in his. He glanced at her, and she offered a small but brave smile. Then, the three of them, joined at the hands, made their way toward the portrait hole.  
  
~*~didn't look out below~watch the time go right out the window~trying to hold on but didn't even know~wasted it all just to watch you go~I kept everything inside and even though I tried~it all fell apart~what it meant to me will eventually be a memory~of a time i tried~*~  
  
  
  
Professor Dumbledore was standing behind the High Table, along with the other teachers. The other seventh years were already in the Great Hall, most looking as nervous and numb as Harry felt. He could see Draco Malfoy through a gap in the people ahead of him. Even Draco didn't look like his usual cocky self, of course, he hadn't been himself lately. Last week, his father had been caught by Arthur Weasley, convicted of being a Death Eater, and sent to Azkaban. Dumbledore cleared his throat, bringing Harry back to reality with an unpleasant bump. "Students," Dumbledore began solemnly, "Alas, this is the last time I will be able to address you as such." Several people actually began to sob at this, Parvati being one of them. Lavender put her arm around her. Hermione had silent tears running down her face. Even Ron looked pale and somewhat frightened. Harry could feel tears start to sting the corners of his eyes…  
  
~*~I tried so hard~and got so far~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~I had to fall~and lose it all~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~*~  
  
  
  
"Dark times have descended upon our world," Dumbledore continued gravely, "Please remember that no matter what arises, you are always welcome at Hogwarts. I ask you, as I did in your fourth year, that when the time comes for you to decide between what is right…and what is easy, that you make the right choice. As a final request to you, I ask you, as you make your way out of the castle, to come around the High Table and shake hands with each of the professors. I and my colleagues will miss you all very much. I hope to see all of you happy…and healthy in the future." He turned to Professor McGonagall who nodded and said, "This way please." As he, Ron, and Hermione started making their slow way toward the High table, Harry felt as though the last seven years of his life were playing inside his mind on fast forward…  
  
~*~one thing I don't know why~doesn't even matter how hard you try~*~  
  
  
  
Professor McGonagall was the first to shake their hands. When Harry took her shaking hand, he realized how human she was. All these years he had seen her as a stern pinnacle of strength, but watching her now, his heart broke for her…  
  
~*~keep that in mind~I designed this rhyme to remind myself how~I tried so hard~*~  
  
  
  
Professor Snape was next. Somehow, the seriousness of the occasion had softened his gaze. For once, Harry saw some sign of emotion in his black eyes. When Professor Snape took Harry's hand, Harry realized how he thought this day would never come. Never had he imagined he would be shaking hands with the man who hated him, and yet, Snape had saved his life before…  
  
~*~in spite of the way you were mocking me~acting like I was part of your property~remembering all the times you fought with me~I'm surprised it got so far~*~  
  
  
  
Harry walked numbly, shaking hands with every professor, not really noticing who they were, until he reached Professor Dumbledore, who was standing at the end of the line. When Dumbledore shook his hand, he leaned over and said quietly. "Your parents would have been proud, Harry." Again, Harry felt the sting of tears in his eyes. He nodded, letting a single tear go sliding down his cheek. His parents…  
  
~*~things aren't the way they were before~you wouldn't even recognize me anymore~not that you knew me back then~but it all comes back to me~in the end~you kept everything inside and even though I tried~ it all fell apart~what it meant to me will eventually be~a memory of a time when I tried~*~  
  
  
  
All too soon, they were standing in the bright sunlight that was cascading across the grounds. The tears were now a stream that was continually pouring down Harry's face, but he didn't care anymore. The awful realization that he would no longer walk across this lawn with Ron and Hermione was dawning on him.  
  
Ron and Hermione. What would happen to them in the future? Now that Voldemort had returned, Harry couldn't be sure they were safe. He was starting to fill with a hopeless anxiety. He didn't want to let go…not yet…  
  
~*~I tried so hard~and got so far~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~I had to fall~and lose it all~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~*~  
  
  
  
Harry's legs felt dead as Hermione pulled him gently in to their compartment. Hermione was crying, tears cascading down her face. Ron was trying to hide it, but several tears were now leaking out of the corners of his eyes. None of them spoke. Harry felt unsure of his voice. All around him there was happiness. People that had futures to look forward to. Mr. Weasley had secured him a job as an Auror. Harry was grateful for this, but he still didn't want to leave Ron and Hermione. Hermione had been accepted and was going to start work at the Ministry of Magic, and Ron was going to be the chair person of his brothers' joke shop that had already expanded in to a worldwide chain of stores. The train started to vibrate slightly, and soon they were off, flying past the houses and fields that lined the track. Hermione noticed Harry's behavior. "It'll be okay," she said softly. He wanted to believe her…  
  
~*~I put my trust in you~pushed as far as I can go~and for all this~there's only one thing you should know~*~  
  
  
  
Harry dropped his head to his hands, the heartbreak and distress he had felt for the last seven years welling up inside him…  
  
~*~I put my trust in you~pushed as far as I can go~and for all this~there's only one thing you should know~*~  
  
  
  
It was over. He was leaving Hogwarts. Harry lifted his head, his eyes scanning slowly over his friends. His best friends. Then, he gradually moved his gaze out the window. And there he sat. Watching his last glimpse of Hogwarts disappear in to the night…  
  
~*~I tried so hard~and got so far~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~I had to fall~and lose it all~but in the end~it doesn't even matter~*~ 


End file.
